Wilier Rave SLR SRAM Force AXS XPLR review

Fast and fun, but better suited to lighter gravel and ‘all-road’ riding than the rougher stuff

Wilier Rave SLR on a purple background
(Image credit: Future)
Cycling Weekly Verdict

Very much in the camp of ‘lighter gravel’ the Wilier Rave SLR is a lightweight and sharp handling machine – ideal for smooth dirt roads and neglected country lanes. The tyre clearance is relatively narrow, which limits its use on rougher UK trails, but with its blistering speed, it very much has a place on broken roads and mellower trails. It comes with a hefty price tag and there are other bikes which offer a similar experience, in that context whether the Rave SLR is worth it depends on the depth of your pockets and fondness for Italian heritage.

Reasons to buy
  • +

    Lightweight

  • +

    Excellent handling

  • +

    Super fast

Reasons to avoid
  • -

    Very expensive

  • -

    Quite narrow tyre clearance

  • -

    J-bar handlebar is more trouble than it's worth

You can trust Cycling Weekly. Our team of experts put in hard miles testing cycling tech and will always share honest, unbiased advice to help you choose. Find out more about how we test.

Gravel bikes as a category have been splitting into two distinct strands: the bikepacking focused, multi-day adventuring sort contrasting with those lighter, faster, snappier models which appear trained on the gravel race scene. 

Wilier, an Italian bike manufacturer with a heritage spanning over 100 years, has chosen to focus very much on the latter. The Rave SLR gravel bike cuts a profile striking in its resemblance to that of Wilier's Filante SLR aero bike, while the frame weight of under a kilo in a size medium puts many a carbon road bike to shame.

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